The present invention relates to a display apparatus comprising a plurality of display units each having a fluorescent lamp and a liquid crystal display element, and fluorescent lamp stabilizers connected to the fluorescent lamps, respectively, and, more particularly, to a display apparatus having a compact construction in which the fluorescent lamp stabilizers are incorporated into the display units, respectively.
Referring to FIG. 4 showing a conventional liquid crystal display unit designated generally by a reference character 1, there are shown a liquid crystal display element 2, a case 3 holding the liquid crystal display element 2, a flexible circuit board 4 which transmits a signal for driving the liquid crystal display element 2, a fluorescent lamp 5 disposed behind the liquid crystal display element 2 for irradiating the liquid crystal display element 2, a socketed harness 6 for connecting the fluorescent lamp to a power source, a connector 6a, a cable 6b, a connector A 6c for connecting the liquid crystal display apparatus, namely, a large picture display apparatus, to the power source of the fluorescent lamp, a backboard 7 for controlling the signal to be given to the liquid crystal display element 2, and a connector B 7a provided on the backboard 7 for transmitting control signals to the large picture display apparatus.
Referring to FIG. 5 showing the general constitution of a conventional liquid crystal display apparatus, there are shown a box 8 accommodating a plurality of the liquid crystal display units 1, stabilizer cabinets 9 accommodating fluorescent lamp stabilizers, not shown, and glow lamps, not shown, connection cable 10 connecting the stabilizer cabinets 9 to the liquid crystal display units 1, and a power source which supplies power to the fluorescent lamp stabilizers, not shown, accommodated in the stabilizer cabinets 9.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the liquid crystal display unit 1 taken along line VI--VI of FIG. 4. In FIG. 6, there are shown reflecting plate 3a for reflecting the light emitted by the fluorescent lamp 5, a diffusion plate 3b disposed within the case 3 for uniformly diffusing the light emitted by the fluorescent lamp 5, and a glass plate 3c incorporated into the case 3 so as to hold the liquid crystal display element 2.
The conventional liquid crystal display unit 1 is constituted as illustrated in FIGS. 4 to 6. The light emitted by the fluorescent lamp 5 is reflected by the reflecting plate 3a, and then falls on the liquid crystal display element 2 after being uniformly diffused by the diffusion plate 3b. A control signal for controlling the image on the large picture display apparatus is given through the connector B 7a to the backboard 7, and then is transmitted through the flexible circuit board 4 to the liquid crystal display element 2 to drive the liquid crystal display element 2. The transmissivity of the liquid crystal display element 2, hence the contents of display on the surface of the liquid crystal display element 2, changes according to the control signal. The large picture display apparatus has a large display surface consisting of the liquid crystal display units 1 each being capable of changing the contents of display in the above-mentioned manner.
In the above-mentioned liquid crystal display apparatus having a plurality of the liquid crystal display units employing fluorescent lamps as light sources, the stabilizers and glow lamps for lighting the fluorescent lamps are disposed apart from the principal unit of the liquid crystal display apparatus in separate units. Therefore, an additional space is necessary for accommodating the stabilizers and glow lamps. Furthermore, since the stabilizers and the glow lamps are disposed apart from the principal unit of the liquid crystal display apparatus, many long cables are necessary for connecting the stabilizers and the glow lamps to the corresponding fluorescent lamps 5. Consequently, the interior of the liquid crystal display apparatus is crowded with the complicated arrangement of the long cables and the associated parts, and hence the cables transmitting high-voltage power are liable to generate noises that causes troubles in the electronic circuits of the liquid crystal display units 1.